There is a new Halloween Haunt in Los Angeles this year. The arrival of the new Paranoia Haunted Attraction in the Santa Monica Place Mall fills an abysmal black void more terrifying than the Seven Gateways of Hell. But is Paranoia Haunted Attraction worth the ride out to Santa Monica? Read on to find out…if you dare!

The American Cinematheque screens a double bill of French thrillers, laced with horror. DIABOLIQUE is a bit over-rated, its reputation based mostly on the crack-jack ending in which a widow’s murdered husband comes back to life – or does he? EYES WITHOUT A FACE is one of the greatest horror films ever made – its poetic, stately style interrupted by the insanely graphic skin grafting seen. It’s all about a doctor trying to restore his daughters face, which was destroyed in an automobile accident.

Update: SMOKE AND MIRRORS – which ran from September through December at the The Promenade Playhouse in Santa Monica last year – will be moving to The Road Theatre at 5103 Lankershim Boulevard, North Hollywood. Previews begin January 18; the official run is form January 26 through March 16. Written and performed by magician Albie Selnick, the play is “re-imagined autobiography,” portraying Selnick as a boy who uses magic to face the world after the death of his father.